During crop harvesting operations on the farm, a harvester apparatus such as a combine is driven through the fields to harvest the crops. Combines typically are used to harvest grains and operate by gathering the crops and then separating the grains from the rest of the plant. The grains are collected by the combine and exit the harvester apparatus at a discharge opening. The rest of the plant is typically discarded. Sometimes during harvesting, the harvested grains are temporarily stored in the combine in a hopper or accumulator bin and then periodically unloaded via the discharge opening to a truck or other vehicle for transport from the field to a desired location for further transport, processing, storage or use. Other times during harvesting, the grain exits the accumulator bin of the combine immediately to a trailing vehicle in order to more quickly harvest the crops.
In many combines, an auger mechanism is used to unload the accumulator bin. In those combines, a rotatably mounted auger conveys the harvested grain through an elongated housing to the discharge opening located at a distal end of the housing, at which point the grain drops downward toward the ground. The transport vehicle is positioned beneath the discharge opening to catch the grain as it falls.
As the grain is unloaded from the combine apparatus and subsequently handled and processed on the farm, grain dust present in the harvested crops causes significant problems. Grain dust consists of a variety minute matter including small particles of the harvested grain, fungus, bacteria, soil particles, agricultural chemicals, pollens and other parts of the plants, and other debris from the environment. Grain dust is a common problem when harvesting corn, soy beans, wheat, barley, and other small grains. Anytime the crops are handled, such as when the crops are unloaded from the combine, the grain dust has a tendency to become airborne.
When the grain dust becomes airborne, the dust causes several significant problems. First, the grain dust poses significant health hazards to the harvester operators and the other farm workers who come in contact with the dust. In particular, emphysema, asthma and other respiratory problems may result or be exacerbated. The grain dust also increases clean-up time and increases equipment maintenance time and costs because of increased wear on the moving parts caused by the dust. The grain dust also causes problems when the crops are air dried on the farm with moving air because the dust reduces air flow through the dryer by more rapidly clogging the filters and screens. Further, airborne pieces of the harvested grain result in a loss of harvest.
Various dust suppression systems have been used in the past in connection with material handling systems when dust is a problem. One known method of suppressing dust is to apply a fluid to the material to keep the dust from becoming airborne. Previously, dust suppression systems employing fluids have been used in connection with bulk storage systems for grain, specifically large commercial grain elevators, to reduce grain dust. Large commercial grain elevators are typically frequently filled and emptied, creating airborne dust during each operation. The dust suppression systems used in connection with grain elevators are provided primarily to reduce the likelihood of grain dust explosions and fires.
While the problem of grain dust in connection with grain elevators and other bulk storage systems for grain has been addressed in the past, the problem of grain dust at the farm level of the harvesting operation is a continuing one. Previously, one way the problem of rain dust has been dealt with on the farm was to improve the operator compartments or cabs on the combine apparatus to make them dust-tight. However, this solution only kept dust from certain areas on the harvester and did not suppress the dust itself. The present invention addresses the above problems of grain dust occurring at the farm level.